elfin

== English == === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ˈɛlfɪn/ Rhymes: -ɛlfɪn === Etymology 1 === From Middle English elven, from Old English elfen, ælfen (“nymph, spirit, fairy”), feminine of elf, ælf (“elf”), equivalent to elf +‎ -in. Cognate with Middle High German elbinne (“a fairy, nymph”). ==== Noun ==== elfin (plural elfins) An elf; an inhabitant of fairy-land. A little urchin or child. Any of the butterflies in the subgenus Incisalia of the North American lycaenid genus Callophrys. === Etymology 2 === Partly from attributive use of Etymology 1, but reanalysed by Edmund Spenser as if equivalent to elf +‎ -in. Compare elven (adjective), elvan. ==== Adjective ==== elfin (comparative more elfin, superlative most elfin) Of or relating to elves. Resembling an elf or elves, especially in tiny size or features. ===== Synonyms ===== see list in elven ===== Derived terms ===== ===== Translations ===== === Anagrams === lifen, nifle == Dutch == === Alternative forms === elvin === Etymology === From elf +‎ -in. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): /ɛlˈfɪn/ Hyphenation: el‧fin Rhymes: -ɪn === Noun === elfin f (plural elfinnen, diminutive elfinnetje n, masculine elf) a female elf (fantasy humanoid)